


Arrow: You Saved Me

by ArlyssTolero



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-07
Updated: 2020-06-07
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:20:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,192
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24583693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ArlyssTolero/pseuds/ArlyssTolero
Summary: After the events of 4x17, "Beacon of Hope", Oliver requests a private word with Laurel to discuss something of great importance to him.
Relationships: Laurel Lance/Oliver Queen
Comments: 19
Kudos: 27





	Arrow: You Saved Me

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I don’t own Arrow.
> 
> A/N: So, recently I’ve been on a bit of a Canarrow kick since that’s my secondary pairing for Oliver. But I realized recently is I really only ship it for *after* 4x18, because as long as Laurel’s alive, I can never really see Oliver going for Sara because it was Laurel who kept him going for five years. As such, I'm pulling back on some of the stories I've posted because I can't honestly stick with them and it isn't fair to readers to keep them up, waiting for updates that won't come. 
> 
> I would get a lot more effusive here, but I don’t want my notes to be longer than the actual story.

“Laurel, could you stay back for a moment?” Oliver Queen asked his team prepared to leave the Bunker, where he was currently staying, having ceded the loft to Felicity rather than have an ugly fight over who had to move out on top of their already ugly fight over the existence of his son.

Dinah Laurel Lance nodded, her wavy honey-blonde hair bouncing on her slender shoulders as she pulled up, allowing John Diggle and Thea Queen to enter the elevator leading up to Oliver’s one-time campaign office, now-defunct since he had ceded the race to Ruve Adams, secret wife of Damien Dahk, in order to save his son’s life. The elevator doors closed on the curious expressions of the two, but neither was willing to intrude on what Oliver had made clear with his words was meant to be a private conversation. “What is it, Ollie?” Laurel asked softly, meeting him in front of the display cases for their suits.

Oliver took her hands gently, holding them. “If it wasn’t for you, I would be dead,” Oliver said quietly. “I _was_ dying, Laurel. I saw my life flashing before my eyes. It gave me a kind of clarity.”

“Clarity?” Laurel asked, confused.

“You saved me,” Oliver said softly.

“Of course, I saved you, Ollie,” Laurel said, reaching up and tenderly brushing his strong jaw with her fingers. “You’re my best friend.”

“I’m not just talking about tonight, Laurel,” Oliver said. He cupped her face in his hands, startling her and causing her green eyes to widen at the intensity of his gaze. He hadn’t looked at her like that in a long time, since before he started pushing her away after the Siege and her father’s coma, after she had said such hateful things to him over Quentin’s comatose form. “You’ve saved me more times than you could possibly imagine. The thought of getting back to you gave me strength through all of those five years. There was a time that I nearly ended it all, nearly killed myself, and the thought of _you_ stopped me.” He lowered one hand while fingering her jaw tenderly with his remaining hand. Laurel unconsciously leaned into his touch as he continued, “When I got home, despite everything, you forgave me for what I did, let me back into your life. Those rooftop meetings meant the world to me, Laurel, that you would accept the darkest part of me into your world.”

“You weren’t as dark as you seem to think, Ollie,” Laurel said, reaching up and gripping his hand, threading her fingers through his. “You saved and helped so many people that year. I know that what you’re doing now is because you want to be seen as a hero like Barry, but Oliver, you have _always_ been a hero to me and to the people of this city. Maybe not the kind of hero some would believe we need, but definitely the hero we deserve. It takes a certain kind of tenacity to live in Star City, and its heroes need to be just as tenacious in order to fight for it. That’s something I learned from the Hood and the Arrow, not the Green Arrow.”

“Thank you,” Oliver said softly. “I’m not sure I believe you but thank you. And this is just another example of how you saved me, Laurel. You’ve always been here, setting me straight when I need it, challenging me instead of letting me bulldoze my way over you like I do everyone else when I think I’m right. You make me stop and think, make me question whether what I’m doing is the right thing and not just the easy thing.” Oliver’s fingers drifted to her chin and lifted upwards, so her eyes met his. “The clarity tonight gave me reminded me of just what you mean to me.”

“What are you saying?” Laurel whispered.

“I’m saying that I never loved Felicity Smoak,” Oliver said quietly. “In the end, I was relieved she ended things because I was never going to be happy with her. I can ignore her when I think I’m right, and there’s nothing binding us outside of this team, and now, there’s not even that. I pushed you away not because of the things that you said, though that was convenient timing, but because what happened with Slade was a reminder that my enemies will always learn who I am, somehow, and they will _always_ use the ones I care about most against me. I thought that by pushing you away, by keeping you at arm’s distance, I would protect you. Then you proved how alike we are when you pushed forward and became the Black Canary despite my objections.”

“Ollie…” Laurel whispered again.

“Dinah Laurel Lance,” Oliver said softly, “ _you_ are the love of my life, and I’m not going to hide from that anymore.” Oliver lowered his head, bending it slightly, and Laurel turned her head upward. Their lips met, and it was like a fire was racing through their veins. Laurel gripped Oliver’s shoulders as she backed into one of the pillars, one hand reaching up and taking hold of the back of Oliver’s head, holding him close. Oliver’s hands roamed the edges of her jacket and peeled it away, the jacket dropping to the floor beneath their feet. Both Oliver and Laurel explored one another’s bodies with their hands as they continued to kiss, coming up for air as needed; Oliver began kissing the side of her neck as she gripped the hem of his shirt and pulled it upward. Oliver guided it the rest of the way, allowing the shirt to drop to the floor. Laurel’s hands roamed over his scars as he guided her towards the cot he slept on and fell back on it, Laurel on top of him. She gripped the hem of her own shirt and drew it off of her in one swift, graceful move, letting it fall by the wayside.

“I love you, too, Oliver Queen,” Laurel said softly as she delivered a series of kisses to his chest, leading up his neck and to his mouth. “You are still the love of my life, and that is never going to change.”

“Then no more lies,” Oliver said softly. “No more secrets. From now on, we do this together. As a team.” He pulled her to him, her bra pressing against his bare chest.

“Together,” Laurel confirmed, before once more bestowing a searing kiss as her legs entwined with Oliver’s, the two old friends discovering new things about one another’s bodies, which were now at the peak of human physical condition for a man and a woman. Their night of passion would give Oliver the hope and love needed to power the protection that John Constantine gave him so that when Damien Darhk held them prisoner with his magic and threatened to end Laurel’s life, Oliver was able to break free of the dark magic holding him and take out Darhk, Andy Diggle, who had turned out to be a traitor, and Malcolm Merlyn, ending the miserable cockroach’s survivalist streak for good.

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: I hope everyone enjoyed this one-shot.
> 
> So, that last little bit is my first attempt to write anything smutty. Don’t know if it really counts but it’s all I feel comfortable doing. With how close things seem to be getting on that front in “The Spectre”, I realized I wanted my first bit of ‘smutty’ work to be Oliver/Laurel. So, please, let me know how I did…


End file.
